


Kiss the Nightmares Away

by Chromi



Series: Deuce-centric [29]
Category: One Piece
Genre: Comfort, Drabble, Dreams and Nightmares, Established Relationship, Kissing, M/M, Prompt Fill, Sleepy Cuddles
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-20
Updated: 2021-02-20
Packaged: 2021-03-16 23:34:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 969
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29583834
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chromi/pseuds/Chromi
Summary: “I’m so lucky,” Deuce grinned against Ace’s lips, tilting to accept his kiss, “luckiest man alive, me. And don’t you ever forget it.”
Relationships: Masked Deuce/Portgas D. Ace
Series: Deuce-centric [29]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1576678
Comments: 8
Kudos: 25





	Kiss the Nightmares Away

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the prompt, "“Why are you awake right now?”" as requested on Tumblr.

Four in the morning was an unusual time of day – the time when it became too late for the heavy drinkers to stay awake, and too early for the diligent (aka Mihal) to get an early start. The still quiet of the morning was viscerally felt, one’s state of mind dictating whether that was perceived favorably or not. People generally described the hour after midnight as the witching hour, but to Ace, the time for his demons and monsters to raise their ugly heads tended to be a little later, calling for him through dreams drenched in cold sweat.

It happened again this morning, forcing him awake with such suddenness he almost panicked. His heart slammed into his ribs, his chest so tight with fear left over from his dream that he was left in physical pain. Bile rose in his throat, burning him from the inside-out, and Ace swallowed hard, willing himself not to cough and wake Deuce beside him.

But for some reason, something always seemed to wake Deuce as well whenever a nightmare stung Ace. Unsure as to what exactly it could be, Ace erred on the side of impossibly romantic and privately liked to pretend it was love that woke Deuce, connecting their hearts and souls.

Because Deuce was definitely awake, despite Ace’s best efforts to stay still, to not throw the covers off and cool down from his own intense body heat. The sleep-softened breathing wasn’t present; the air was tense with anticipation and unspoken concern, each waiting for the other to address the problem and break the silence first.

But, as always, Deuce finally gave in first, rolling over to face Ace and cuddle in close, despite how he must have felt clammy and hot to touch. Deuce never did care when it mattered, and Ace was grateful to have him burying his face into the crook of his neck again tonight.

“Why’re you awake?” Deuce breathed against him, wrapping an arm around Ace’s chest and holding him close. “Have you been awake this whole time?”

Ace shook his head, lacing his fingers between Deuce’s at his sternum. “Had a nightmare,” he whispered, embarrassed by how thin and wispy his voice sounded. He cleared his throat and aimed for something less fragile. “Nothing unusual. I’m okay.”

“You’re not,” Deuce whispered back at once, cuddling in closer, sure to be too hot himself now, trapped under the blankets with Ace’s soaring temperature as he was, but he didn’t complain. “It’s okay that you’re not.”

The seconds slipped by, each dragging in tandem with the slide of Deuce’s lips against Ace’s neck, spreading slow, gentle kisses that comforted, calmed, grounded him again. He was good at that, Ace was happy to admit to himself – Deuce had a gift, so to speak, an ability to make Ace feel loved even when all the horrors and misery of the world indicated that he should not be.

And that only served to make the guilt evermore sour.

“Will talking about it make you feel better?” Deuce asked, easing a kiss to the junction where earlobe met jawbone. “It doesn’t matter if I’ve heard it before; tell me anyway.”

“Can I just tell you the gist of it?” Ace asked. “I don’t wanna go into detail, if that’s...”

“Whatever you want,” Deuce reassured. “Silence is fine, too, by the way. Whatever will help.”

Ace hesitated, choosing to focus on Deuce’s breathing, the rhythmic press and fall of his chest to Ace’s back with each slow, relaxed inhale, exhale. The kisses were a brilliant distraction, never staying still, never giving Ace the chance to relegate them to a background sensation.

"The world discovered my connection to Roger,” Ace eventually admitted, gripping Deuce’s hand tighter in his. “They made a public show of it, came after me and the crew with the intention of killing us all. The whole world laughed as I—“

A well-placed kiss was pressed to the side of his neck, eliciting a full-bodied shiver that ran all the way to the tips of his toes. Deuce noticed, of _course_ , and so did it again, pressing firmer, teeth grazing at the spot that had Ace arching forward just _so_ into his hand at his chest—

“A-As I,” Ace tried again, gasping when Deuce’s nails prickled into his skin, anchoring his hold, “as they—are you doing this on—on purpose?”

“Doing what?”

Ace huffed through his nose; Deuce sounded innocent, but the kisses continued regardless, fluttering and printing into where Deuce knew through learned practice that Ace was most sensitive.

“Trying to distract me.”

“No.” Another kiss; another bolt of a tremor along Ace’s skin. “I’m trying to show you you’re loved.” Deuce pulled him in tighter, heat and sweat be damned, buried his face into Ace’s hair, and breathed, “you’re safe. I won’t let your nightmares keep you.”

Moving carefully so as not to end up elbowing Deuce, Ace rolled over onto his other side to face him, enveloping him in a tight hug. Legs wound together; fingers carded through hair; knees slotted into place and forehead touched to forehead, nose to nose, heart to heart.

“They can’t keep me, ‘cause you’ve got me, right? You’ve got me forever,” Ace smiled, breathing him in, knowing each of the ridges of Deuce’s spine where he trailed his fingers with intimate familiarity.

“Right,” Deuce agreed, “and I’m never letting you go; I’m a selfish bastard, unfortunately.”

“I like selfish bastards,” Ace played along, “so that’s lucky, huh?”

“I’m so lucky,” Deuce grinned against Ace’s lips, tilting to accept his kiss, “luckiest man alive, me. And don’t you ever forget it.”

There was no possible way that Ace could ever forget how Deuce regarded himself. None whatsoever.

Now if only Ace could one day agree with him on that belief.

**Author's Note:**

> Sorry for the silence! Who Knows (what could happen) chapter 5 is being written at the moment, and at the time of writing this I have 4000 words written for it! Pyrexia chapter 3 is also halfway done at 2700 words :) I am working, just slowly... I've found my motivation again now, though, so I hope to get WK posted within the next two weeks. Fingers crossed!
> 
> I love chatting, so feel free to send me a message on either [Tumblr](https://chromiwrites.tumblr.com/) or [Twitter](https://twitter.com/Chromiwrites)! I'm always open to requests and chatting about these guys!


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